When was The Tavern established?

The Tavern claims a founding year of 1779, placing it in the Colonial America era.

The Tavern — Oldest Bar in Virginia (Est. 1779)

Q: What is the oldest bar in Virginia?

The Tavern in Abingdon is widely cited as the oldest bar in Virginia, with a claimed founding year of 1779. Verification status: Disputed. The 1779 building is authentically Abingdon's oldest and among the oldest west of the Blue Ridge, but it was not continuously a bar: over the centuries it served as a post office, Civil War hospital, bank, bakery, general store, barber shop, and private residence, and only reopened as a restaurant in 1994. The Red Fox Inn & Tavern in Middleburg (c. 1728) presents an older and more continuous hospitality claim.

Q: Is The Tavern still open?

As of our July 2026 review: Open today. Open and operating as of 2026 (dinner Mon-Sat 5-9 pm, Sun 4-8:30 pm). Longtime owner Max Hermann, who reopened it as a restaurant in 1994, sold the business to his longtime manager Josh Fuller in 2019 and passed away April 30, 2024; the restaurant continues under Fuller. Confirm current hours with the establishment before visiting.

Since 1779

Built in 1779, The Tavern is the oldest building in Abingdon and originally served as a tavern and overnight inn (known early on as Vance's Tavern) for stagecoach travelers heading west on the Great Road, roughly today's I-81 corridor. Its two-foot-thick walls are hand-cut local limestone, and guests reportedly included Henry Clay, Andrew Jackson, Pierre Charles L'Enfant, and Louis Philippe, later King of the French. The building also housed the first post office west of the Blue Ridge and later served as a Civil War hospital, bank, bakery, general store, barber shop, and private residence. Max Hermann reopened it as a fine-dining restaurant in 1994, and it continues to operate today under owner Josh Fuller.

Louis Philippe, who later became King of the French, is among the historic guests documented to have stopped at The Tavern during his American exile.

How solid is the claim?

Disputed

Virginia’s oldest bar — the evidence

The Tavern in Abingdon is our featured pick for the oldest bar in Virginia, with a claimed founding year of 1779. The 1779 building is authentically Abingdon's oldest and among the oldest west of the Blue Ridge, but it was not continuously a bar: over the centuries it served as a post office, Civil War hospital, bank, bakery, general store, barber shop, and private residence, and only reopened as a restaurant in 1994. The Red Fox Inn & Tavern in Middleburg (c. 1728) presents an older and more continuous hospitality claim.

Claimed Founding

1779

Operating Status

Open today — Open and operating as of 2026 (dinner Mon-Sat 5-9 pm, Sun 4-8:30 pm). Longtime owner Max Hermann, who reopened it as a restaurant in 1994, sold the business to his longtime manager Josh Fuller in 2019 and passed away April 30, 2024; the restaurant continues under Fuller.

Verification

Disputed

Last Reviewed

July 2026

Competing Claims

Other Virginia establishments with a stake in the title:

c. 1728

The Red Fox Inn & Tavern — Middleburg

Established as Chinn's Ordinary and billed as the oldest continuously operated inn in the U.S.; architectural analysis questions how much of the current building dates to 1728, but the claim is older than The Tavern's.

1784

Michie Tavern — Charlottesville

Historic tavern serving midday fare, but the building was relocated in 1927 and it operates today primarily as a museum with dining, weakening a continuity claim.

The Tavern

Since 1779

How solid is the claim?

Virginia’s oldest bar — the evidence

Competing Claims

Sources

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